I thought the bike was gettin a little heavy so drilled some holes in the spring fork dropouts. Good for maybe 2 grams weight loss?
Had to make chain guard brackets. The first was pretty conventional:
The second slightly more complex. Started with this:
Made this:
Fits like this:
Just gotta finish drillin some holes to attach the bracket to the guard. I'm a little nervous about welding the two aluminum parts with a torch and some rod. A little too much heat and the guard is toast

Just gotta finish drillin some holes to attach the bracket to the guard. I'm a little nervous about welding the two aluminum parts with a torch and some rod. A little too much heat and the guard is toast

Click to expand...

i wouldn't weld it. It's only holding up the chain guard.....maybe just a tac?

I've been busy on the bike but haven't posted in a while. Been working on the paint and prepping all the parts for hopefully the final assembly. The frame had a lot of pitting in the metal so I had to use a filler primer and do a lot of wet sanding to get it ready for paint. Here it is in the back yard where I wet sanded it.

wow this is taking shape very nicely but i did have a question on the trus rods you made you used a hollow ss steel rod?? i love the direction your going with this and everything you have done keep it up ...

The truss rods are made from 1/2" Stainless tubing, the kind used for hydraulic or pneumatic lines in industry. A 7/16" fine thread tap worked perfectly to tap the top for the studs I made out of 7/16" bolts. I cut a screwdriver slot into the top of the studs so you can turn them in or out of the truss rods before tightening the lock nuts. This changes the overall length of the truss rods and allows you to center the wheel in the fork.

Worked on buffing the new parts to get them ready for installation. Not a fun job! Here's a picture of the new parts made for the build. Most are ready to be installed, some need final buffing. The new SS seatpost has to be bent yet but I'm waiting for the seat to arrive before I do it. It's longer than normal so it can be raised for longer rides.

Ran the new springs and the bearing cups through the buffer too.

Buffed the raised portions of the chain guard, then painted the rest. Have to clean up where the paint got under the tape. I used Thin Line Tape and wasn't too happy with it.